


You May Want to Marry My Soulmate

by antlersantlers



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Devoted Rey/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren, Emotional Hurt, Established Relationship, F/M, Falling In Love, Feels, Fluff and Angst, Gen, Implied/Referenced Character Death, Love Letters, Post-TRoS, Soft Ben Solo
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-20
Updated: 2020-12-20
Packaged: 2021-03-10 23:21:08
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 950
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28145268
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/antlersantlers/pseuds/antlersantlers
Summary: A love letter.Based on the New York Times Modern Love columnYou May Want to Marry My Husbandby Amy Krause Rosenthal.
Relationships: Kylo Ren/Rey, Rey/Ben Solo, Rey/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren
Comments: 8
Kudos: 39





	You May Want to Marry My Soulmate

**Author's Note:**

> Happy heartbreak anniversary! 
> 
> Read AKR’s amazing piece here: [You May Want to Marry My Husband](https://www.nytimes.com/2017/03/03/style/modern-love-you-may-want-to-marry-my-husband.html). It is completely devastating, so naturally I thought to make it reylo. 
> 
> I modeled the drawing at the beginning pretty closely on the one that went with the original article. I think it turned out nice! Or, rather, appropriately sad.
> 
> Thanks to my friend/coworker/prank victim Cat and the lovely [Britt](https://archiveofourown.org/users/trasharama) for their help.

#####  MODERN LOVE

## You May Want to Marry My Soulmate

#### By Ben Solo

###### 35 ABY

I’ve been trying to compose this in the time leading up to the end. I got a glimpse of it once, just a flash, but knowing it was coming didn’t make it any easier. I didn’t _want_ to write this, but I have to because there is a rather irrefutable deadline. 

Want to hear a terrible joke? Two soulmates, tied together by both fate and circumstance, bring down the truest evil in the galaxy. They briefly think that this whole endeavor might not be completely in vain, that they might be allowed to carry on. Their happiness lasts for but a moment, and then disappears. All plans are gone, into the ether. 

No summers on Varykino. No calm evenings on Tattooine. No weekend jaunts around Coruscant. I’ll never be able to show her around Chandrila. We’ll never hike around Ahch-To together. 

I should introduce the woman at the heart of this. Rey. 

Rey nobody, Rey of Jakku, Rey Skywalker—none of that matters because she need only be just Rey. 

She’s an easy woman to fall in love with. I did it in a moment. 

At the end of our first fight I knew I would follow this woman anywhere. Rey? She took longer, because I’m not an easy person to love. Weeks or months (I was never sure), but she got there too. 

Let me explain: She was a mere scavenger who, almost single-handedly, brought the First Order to its knees. When we first came face to face, we fought like mad. Not exactly a great first date; but, as I said, I’m not an easy person to love. 

The time I knew her was frustratingly short, and the time I did not was frustratingly long. Our bond was unexpected, but I wouldn’t trade a second of it for anything. 

First the basics: she is so strong and as scrappy as the day is long. Her hair is a lovely earthy brown and her eyes are piercing. Her appearance is never polished, but it’s so specifically _her_. 

I will tell you about her personality, but know that everything about her feels so important, so vital; I have no idea where to start. 

She’s not a sharp dresser, but that doesn’t stop her from being the most stunning woman in any room. Her clothes are practical, unpretentious, and light. I longed to see her dressed in something remarkable, but I never got the opportunity. Perhaps you can take up the charge. 

Her table manners are horrifying, but even so there is no greater joy in all the galaxy than watching her eat. The way to her heart is truly through her stomach. 

If any ship she’s worked on could speak, it would say she’s unerringly clever. She can, and will, fix anything. 

Rey is the most incredible friend. She finds the good in every person and hones in on it. Unbelievably, she saw the good in me. I’m not, or rather I wasn’t, a good man; but I was not completely lost. She was perhaps the only one who saw that, and I still struggled to believe I deserved her good faith. 

If you’re seeking a travel companion, no one could be better. Her joy is unbridled and her excitement is boundless. There is so much she has yet to see, so much I had planned to show her. Take her somewhere green, show her the stars, let her curiosity guide your exploration. She will never disappoint. 

To say that she’s guarded is a bit of an understatement. Nothing came easily to her, and yet she still possesses more optimism than I ever could. Don’t push too hard, just be there. Show her you’re there, that you’re not going anywhere, and she might eventually take your hand if you offer. 

Her smile is brighter than sunlight, but it’s hard-won. Every time I saw it, I think my heart stopped. Every single time. 

Did I mention she’s gorgeous? She’s incredibly beautiful. She’s tall and lithe and she has _dimples_. When she gets angry, as she often did with me, she scrunches up her whole face and it is remarkably attractive. I will certainly miss looking at her. 

Everything about her screams that she is my opposite, from her brightness and good nature, to her beauty and lack of refinement. And yet no one has been more my equal, or offered greater balance for my lesser qualities, than she has. 

Our story could be a fairy tale. A prince and his love fighting their way across the galaxy; fighting against one another, for one another. It could be the stuff of legend, but for the messy realities of war and trauma. And the unpleasant part where I die. 

So at this point you probably have enough information to know she’s perfect and deserving of your love. She is, though she might not believe it. 

I wish I had more time with Rey. I want more nights spent talking with her across the vastness of space. I want more stolen glances and companionable silences. I want to read to her. I want to hear her singing voice and try whatever nonsense she attempts to cook. I want _more_. 

My wish is that someone might read this, find Rey, and a new love story can grow. 

You might feel entirely frightened—bounding into anything this new, this deep can make you feel that way—but trust me when I say it will be completely worth every second. I’ll pause before I sign off to give you a break from me, and to let your new love begin.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


Love always, Ben


End file.
